1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to medical diagnostic instruments, and specifically to an eye viewing device for use in eye viewing.
2. Background of the Prior Art
Commercially available eye viewing devices for use in retinal viewing have been observed to exhibit numerous limitations.
According to an indirect ophthalmoscope design, a beam splitter is provided in the optical viewing path which directs illumination light rays into an eye, and simultaneously allows receive imaging light rays to pass therethrough. The substantial light losses inherent with this design require that a large, high powered light source be incorporated in the device for the device to satisfactorily illuminate a retina. High powered light sources, in general, are difficult to package, consume excessive amounts of input power, and produce large amounts of heat and unwanted light such as glare. High powered light sources also have large filaments, typically larger than the diameter of an undilated pupil. This makes indirect ophthalmoscopes especially susceptible to glare problems attributable to incident light rays being reflected from outer eye structures such as the iris, cornea, and sclera.
Cameras for retinal imaging, such as fundus cameras, provide high quality imaging. However, retinal viewing cameras, in general, are expensive, typically require pupil dilation for retinal viewing, and typically require operation by a highly skilled and trained camera operator.
There is a need for a compact, lower input power eye viewing device which provides appropriate retinal illumination and which facilitates wide field retinal viewing without requiring pupil dilation.